| 1936 Italy Invades Ethiopia -The Italians had claimed Ethiopia as their territory. With economic conditions worsening at home, Mussolini needed to take actions that would distract the Italian people. In 1936, the Italians fought against poorly-armed Ethiopian troops in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital. The League of Nations censured Italy, but that comprised the extent of world reaction. |
1936 Spanish Civil War Breaks Out-(7/17/36) The Spanish Army, led by General Franco with support from the Catholic church and the Monarchists, began a revolt against the democratic government of Spain. The revolt was opposed by government Loyalists, and civil war broke out.
In reality, the war became a surrogate war for the European Fascists, with Germany and Italy giving open aid to the Spanish Fascists and the Soviet Union aiding the Loyalists. The rest of Europe followed a policy of neutrality, denying the legitimate government of Spain the arms it needed to defend itself. |
| 1936 Hitler Denounces Locarno Pact, Occupies Rhineland -(3/7/36) On March 7th, Hitler announced that he was renouncing the Locarno Pact guaranteeing European borders, and was reoccupying the Rhineland. There were protests by France and Britain, but the British government was unwilling to take any further action. |
| 1936 Revolt In Japan -An uprising was staged by young Japanese military officers. The mutineers managed to assassinate Japanese finance minister Takahasi Korekiyo. The officers held Tokyo for three days; but the rebellion was ultimately put down, and seventeen of the rebel leaders were sentenced to death. |
| 1936 Oil Found in Saudi Arabia -In 1936, Standard Oil of California discovered oil under the Saudi desert. The discovery of oil tranformed the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia into one of the richest nations on earth. |
| 1936 Treaty Between Egypt and Great Britain -A treaty was signed in August 1936 between Egypt and Great Britain. Under the terms, Great Britain was to withdraw all but 10,000 of its troops. Those troops would be restricted to the Suez Canal Zone. Also, Great Britain would be permitted to keep a naval base in Alexandria for eight years. |
| 1936 Arab Revolt in Palestine -An Arab High Committee was formed to unite all Arab opposition to the Jews in Palestine. The Arabs called for a general strike, and rioting continued throughout Palestine. The British appointed a Committee of Inquiry to investigate the situation and recommend a solution. |
| 1937 US Army gets 1st B-17 -(3/1/37) On March 1st, the US Army Air Corps received the first of its order of 13 B-17 bombers. These four-engine bombers could cruise at 256 mph, at an altitude of 30,000 feet. The B-17 was to be the main US strategic bomber in Europe during World War II. |
1937 Neutrality Act -(5/1/37) This Neutrality Act, which became known as the "Third Neutrality Act," extended the US Neutrality Acts to civil wars. This was primarily in response to the Spanish Civil War.
In May, the Neutrality Acts were once again amended, this time making it unlawful for American citizens to travel on belligerent vessels. |
| 1937 Hindenburg Blows Up -(5/6/37) After traveling from Germany, the German dirigible "Hindenburg" exploded upon landing in Lakehurst, New Jersey. Thirty-six of its passengers were killed. The cause of this explosion remains unknown to this day. The Hindenburg disaster put an end to the "Age of the Dirigible." |
| 1937 Sino-Japanese War Resumes-(7/7/37)On July 7th, Japanese troops clashed in maneuvers with Chinese troops at the Marco Polo Bridge, ten miles west of Peking. Three weeks later, the Japanese invaded in large numbers. In order to circumvent the pledge made in the Kellogg Pact, Japan did not officially declare war, but called the event the "China Incident." President Roosevelt took advantage of Japan's reluctance to declare war; using it as a loophole in the Neutrality Act, allowing the United States to continue shipment of weapons to the Chinese. |
| 1937 India's National congress Wins Election -In the elections for provincial assemblies, representatives of the Congress Party achieved absolute majorities in six provinces and plurality in three others. The Congress Party thus faced the dilemma of whether to use the power they had won at the polls, or continue to deny the legitimacy of the process. They opted to begin governing. |
| 1937 Royal Commission calls For Partition Of Palestine -The Peel Commission recommended the partition of Palestine into a small Jewish state, a much larger Arab state united with Transjordan, and a small continuing British presence in Jerusalem, Jaffa and the road between the two cities. The Jews accepted the plan; the Arabs, however, rejected it. |
| 1937 Amelia Earhart Lost -(7/2/37)Amelia Earhart was lost over the Pacific in her attempt to make an around-the-world flight along the equator. The flight, which began in Miami, had made it around the world to Lae, in the Pacific. She was flying a Lockheed "Electra." Her last flight words by radio were "we are flying northeast." |
| 1937 "Quarantine Of Aggressors" -In total opposition to the tone of the neutrality legislation, President Roosevelt, in a speech in Chicago, called for an international "quarantine of the aggressor nations." Roosevelt realized that he was ahead of public opinion; thus it would be a long time before he would repeat the theme. |
| 1937 Somoza Family Gains Control Over Nicaragua -The legitimate government of Juan Sacasa was overthrown by the National Guard, led by General Anastasio Somoza. Somoza became President and acquired dictatorial powers. Members of his family ruled Nicaragua for the next forty years. |
| 1937 Soviet High Command Purged - The purges in the Soviet Union spread to the Soviet military. Marshal Michael Tukhachevski and seven other top generals were arrested and executed for treason. |
| 1937 Revolt in Japan -An uprising was staged by young Japanese military officers. The mutineers managed to assassinate Japanese finance minister Takahasi Korekiyo. The officers held Tokyo for three days; but the rebellion was ultimately put down, and seventeen of the rebel leaders were sentenced to death. |
| 1937 Italian-German Axis Announced-On November 11, 1937, Italy joined an anti-comtern (Communist) pact already in force between the Japanese and the Germans. The pact established the Triple Alliance that became known as "The Axis." |
| 1937 Panay Incident - (12/12/37) On December 12th, Japanese planes bombed a US river gunboat, the Panay, in China. The Panay sank, two were killed and thirty wounded. The State Department demanded an apology, which the Japanese provided. The attack followed Japanese attacks against Chinese civilians. |
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